The Devil's Den: A Duke Athletics Podcast

Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to Countdown to Craziness – the kickoff to the 2024-25 Duke Men's Basketball season. Topics discussed include: Favorite player intros The new scrimmage format The aggressive play of Caleb Foster Tyrese Proctor's shooting struggles The battle for the third wing spot between Knueppel, James, Evans, and Harris Cooper Flagg's quiet productivity Khaman Maluach and Maliq Brown's role in a perimeter-focused offense Maluach's room for growth as a screen setter The need for the guards to recognize Maluach's presence as a rim protector The overall emphasis on spot-up 3pt shooting Starting lineup predictions To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by 247Sports National Basketball Analyst Travis Branham for a discussion on the national recruiting landscape as a whole and Duke recruiting specifically. Topics include: The impact of NIL and the transfer portal on the timing of player commitments How the top programs targeting smaller classes will impact the distribution of talent across college basketball Patterns in the type of players Coach Scheyer has chosen to recruit The freshman outside of Cooper Flagg likely to have the most impact at Duke Kon Knueppel's NBA draft stock and player comps Cooper Flagg's potential impact at Duke Flagg's best role on offense Which school leads in the recruitment of the Boozer twins Where Duke might pivot if they don't land the Boozers How long Cayden Boozer will likely stay in college Cam Boozer vs. Paolo Banchero The fit of other Duke recruits alongside the Boozers How to achieve greater roster stability in college basketball going forward The possibility of multiyear NIL contracts for players Travis Branham can be found on Twitter as @TravisBranham or on 247Sports at https://247sports.com/user/Travis%20Branham/ To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by Jordan Hofeditz of SMU Athletics and Jackson Moore of 247Sports to discuss the new additions to the ACC -- Cal, Stanford, and SMU. Jordan and Jackson give their perspective of what joining the ACC means to these teams. Topics discussed include: Recent coaching hires at all of these programs Strengths and weaknesses of incoming rosters Feelings about leaving previous conference The dissolution of a historic conference like the Pac-12 SMU's longtime struggles to find conference stability Loss of traditional rivalries Impact of travel schedules, particularly on non-revenue sports Potential new rivalries Venues Jordan and Jackson are most excited to see the teams they cover visit Impact of joining the ACC on athletic budgets and NIL funding Jordan Hofeditz can be found on Twitter @jhofeditz. Jackson Moore's writing about various West Coast programs can be found here: https://247sports.com/college/fresno-state/user/JacksonMoore/ To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to Pro Devils Weekend, which saw 20 Duke players return to campus. They break down the Duke Blue Planet footage from the weekend, which included Dereck Lively running post drills with Khaman Maluach, Coach Scheyer mic'd up for practice, and a 30-minute long team speech from Jay Bilas. They also talk about Cameron and Cayden Boozer visiting campus and where Duke stands with them from a recruiting perspective. Later, they get into some hypothetical questions inspired by DJ Steward's appearance on The Brotherhood podcast. Steward said he probably left school too early. Who are some other players who could have stayed, and how would their decision have impacted that next season's team? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Shoe, and Raul are joined by Josh Cox and Jamie Holt of the Section 17 Podcast. They discuss Duke Football's upcoming season before turning their attention back to basketball. Football topics discussed include: Duke Football's up-and-down 2023 season Where the victory over Clemson stacks up amongst the greatest wins in Duke Football history The Riley Leonard injury and its impact on the season Mike Elko's departure for Texas A&M Riley Leonard's transfer to Notre Dame as well as other offseason departures The Manny Diaz hire Maalik Murphy being named starting quarterback Expected changes to the Duke offense The impact of retaining strength and conditioning coach, David Feeley Biggest expected strengths and weaknesses of the team for the 2024 season Predicting the team's record Most anticipated games Basketball topics include: Assessing Duke's 2023-24 season Is the program making reasonable progress under Coach Scheyer? How does making the Elite Eight affect this assessment? The offseason transfers: which player hurt the most to lose? Expectations for the 2024-25 season How Jon Scheyer addressed the weaknesses of last year's team The hype around Kon Knueppel Asking highly ranked players to buy into a limited role Will the starting backcourt be productive enough? Cooper Flagg as offensive initiator Drafting current Duke Basketball players for the football team and vice versa The Section 17 Podcast can be followed @DukeFBTalk on Twitter and on their website, https://dukefootballtalk.com. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul speak with Jeff Goodman, College Basketball Analyst at The Field of 68, about all things Duke and college basketball. Topics discussed include: Assessing Duke's 2023-24 season relative to expectations Of the seven Duke players who entered the portal, who will be missed the most? Cooper Flagg's potential impact in 2025 The way Duke has built an experienced and versatile team around Flagg The buzz around Kon Knueppel Khaman Maluach's college readiness The ceiling of Duke's starting backcourt The pressure on Jon Scheyer for the 2024-25 season Conference realignment and the newest additions to the ACC Players who could win NPOY The CBB games Jeff is looking forward to the most The importance of tough scheduling The charm of downtown Charleston, SC To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by good friend Steven Shuffler for the second part of their 2014-15 season recap. In this episode, they focus on the NCAA Tournament with a brief pit stop at Duke's dominant win over NC State in the ACC Tournament. They break down each game of the tournament, focusing on standout players and plays, as well as the overall narrative of each game. Topics discussed include: The importance of role definition Justise Winslow's versatility Duke's ability to use multiple defensive schemes within the course of a game Wisconsin vs. Kentucky as a championship game opponent Grayson Allen's emergence Tyus Jones in the high ball screen Quinn Cook's banquet speech Lastly, they rank the 2015 team in the pantheon of Duke title teams and debate whether Duke will be able to break the championship drought this season. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul look back on the 2014-15 season to celebrate the upcoming 10th anniversary of Duke's last championship team. They each pick a game from the regular season that made them believe Duke could win a title. They discuss Duke's early road win at #2 Wisconsin, the come-from-behind victory against St. John's for Coach K's 1000th career win, and the win at then-undefeated Virginia. They break down each game in detail, discussing their favorite plays and moments as well as what each game said about the team. Lastly, they talk about Olympic Basketball and the reasons the US team had several close games in the exhibition period. They assess Coach K's dominance as the US coach and the factors that made it possible. (Note: this episode was recorded before the US's first official game against Serbia, so there's no discussion of Jayson Tatum's benching or any other developments since the exhibition against Germany.) To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh and Raul are joined by Steve Clark of thedevilsden.com to talk about his recent experiences attending Peach Jam and the Adidas 3SSB Championship. While there, Steve was able to watch and interview multiple high-level recruits, many of them on Duke's radar. Topics discussed include: Cameron Boozer vs. AJ Dybantsa Koa Peat as a passer Acaden Lewis's feel in the pick and roll Jalen Haralson's foul-drawing Nate Ament's growth as a prospect Shelton Henderson's friendship with Ament and their desire to play together The 2025 recruit Steve would most like to see Duke land Who is most likely to end up at Duke Other 2025 players to watch out for Then they turn their attention to 2026 where they discuss: Why Duke doesn't have any offers out to 2026 players yet Who is most likely to get a Duke offer soon How the portal and NIL have shifted Duke's recruiting philosophy The possible upside of having more avenues to add players each offseason The strength of the 2026 class compared to 2025, particularly at the top Some names to watch out for in 2026 (Brandon McKoy, Caleb Holt, Jordan Smith, etc) Lastly, they talk about the NBA buzz around Duke freshman Kon Knueppel. Steve relays what he's heard from multiple NBA scouts regarding Knueppel's game. You can read Steve's interviews and articles here: https://247sports.com/college/duke/user/steveclark/ To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by John Watson of thedevilsden.com as they sit down with Coach Jon Scheyer for the second consecutive offseason. Topics discussed include: Jayson Tatum's journey from Duke recruit to NBA champion The fickle nature of the NCAA Tournament How to define a successful season Having tough conversations with players in the offseason Building a competitive culture Evaluating players in the transfer portal on a short timeline Using analytics services like Big League Advantage What made each incoming transfer a good fit Scheyer's philosophy on pace of play The role of length and size in defensive versatility Striking a balance between forcing turnovers and playing smart defense The importance of shooting at every position Managing player expectations and media hype Duke being "disrespected" by opponents on their home floor The responsibility and excitement of coaching a talent like Cooper Flagg To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to an NBA draft that saw Jared McCain drafted 16th by the Philadelphia 76ers and Kyle Filipowski taken 32nd by the Utah Jazz. They discuss how they see each player fitting on their new team. Can Jared McCain play with Tyrese Maxey, or is that backcourt too small? How will McCain play off of Joel Embiid? How will Jazz coach Will Hardy utilize Filipowski, and how much playing time can he expect in a crowded frontcourt? What is Filipowski's longterm position? Then they turn their attention to the scrimmage video recently released by Duke's social media team, analyzing all six minutes of footage in way too much detail. Which players stood out? What were their favorite moments? What are the lingering questions? Lastly, they cover a few other pieces of news. They talk about Cooper Flagg being selected to Team USA's Select Team, and what it means that he was the only college player to receive that honor. They also give their thoughts on JJ Redick becoming the LA Lakers new coach. What are his chances of success there? Note: this episode was recorded before NBA free agency officially began. So certain relevant signings, like Paul George to the 76ers, were not mentioned. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh and Raul are joined by Brian Geisinger of 247Sports and the Buzz Beat Podcast to do a deep dive on the NBA Draft. They focus on Duke's two potential 1st Round picks, Jared McCain and Kyle Filipowski. They discuss best and worst team fits for each player as well as reasonable expectations for them at the NBA level. They wrap up by focusing on the draft as whole. Who will go #1? Who should go #1? And who should Charlotte, a team that Brian covers, pick at #6? Are there any under-the-radar players Brian likes later in the draft? How will the importance of drafting well change under the new salary cap rules? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul are back from an extended break to react to the Celtics winning the NBA title. Jayson Tatum becomes just the eighth Duke player to win an NBA championship, leading his team in points, rebounds, and assists in the playoffs. What does this do for his legacy? Were the voters right to award Finals MVP to Jaylen Brown, or was Tatum snubbed? Will Tatum and the Celtics win more rings going forward? Where does this place Tatum in the pantheon of greatest Duke players in NBA history? They also talk about the future of the Mavericks, who likewise had Duke players filling prominent roles in Dereck Lively and Kyrie Irving. Was this just a one-off for them? What can they do to improve their roster to put them over the top? Then they debate who the next Duke player to be the face of a title-winning team will be. Who are the most realistic candidates? What do those players have to do -- and what do their front offices have to do -- to get there? Lastly, they react briefly to the player teaser videos released by Duke Men's Basketball's social media team this week. What, and who, stood out? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh and Raul are joined by Dan Favale, NBA Staff Writer at Bleacher Report and host of the Hardwood Knocks podcast. They discuss various Duke players making a significant impact in the NBA. Topics include: The unfair criticism of Jayson Tatum from NBA fans and the media How a championship will alter that conversation Kyrie Irving's comfort level in Dallas Whether Dereck Lively is the perfect role-playing big man What Paolo Banchero needs to do to win MVP in his career How the Magic can build around Paolo to optimize him and the team Destinations for Tyus Jones after Washington Tre Jones's future with the Spurs Whether it's time for the Pelicans to break up the Zion Williamson-Brandon Ingram pairing New Orleans' need for a floor-raising point guard The inherent difficulties of building around Zion given his frequent injuries Grayson Allen's importance to Phoenix Rapid fire questions about RJ Barrett, Jalen Johnson, Wendell Carter, and others [Note: This episode was recorded before the Dallas Mavericks had closed out their series versus Minnesota to advance to the Finals.] To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Now that Duke's full roster is set, Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by Brian Geisinger of 247Sports to discuss the construction of the team. Brian gives his in-depth thoughts on the players added in the transfer portal. What do they say about Coach Scheyer's plans for this season? What kind of role will each play? They also look at the returning backcourt of Caleb Foster and Tyrese Proctor. How do these players complement each other, and what are some areas of concern? Lastly, they discuss the incoming freshmen. What are reasonable expectations for Cooper Flagg? Which of the other freshmen might contribute in unexpected ways? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh and Raul are joined by Isaac Popper, ESPN+ Broadcast Statistician and President of Tulane Analytics. Isaac shares his insights into Duke's latest transfer portal commitment, Tulane guard Sion James. Isaac has known James since they were both freshmen and has watched him grow as a person and basketball player. He shares his thoughts on Sion's academic excellence, his off-court philanthropy, his on-court leadership, and the evolution of his game. He talks about Sion's improving efficiency and outside shooting, as well as the defensive versatility that allows him to guard positions 1-5. They also discuss how Sion will augment Duke's roster and what makes him such a great fit culturally. You can follow Isaac Popper on Twitter at @ipopStats. To support the Sion James Foundation, an organization providing for impoverished youth and adults, please visit https://my.foundation/sionjames . To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh and Raul are back with John Watson of thedevilsden.com to get his thoughts on Duke's wild offseason. Topics discussed include: The loss of seven player to the transfer portal The causes behind the mass exodus The additions of Mason Gillis and Maliq Brown A possible commitment from Sion James of Tulane What Duke is hoping to change about its culture Recruiting strategies and roster construction in the portal era The relative silence around the 2025 recruiting class Duke's position in the NIL landscape How Duke maintains its brand if it shifts away from being an NBA pipeline To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to offseason which saw seven players from Duke's 2023-24 roster enter the transfer portal. They talk about the fits of Jeremy Roach and Mark Mitchell on Baylor and Missouri respectively, as well as what it means to lose promising players like TJ Power and Sean Stewart. They discuss the difficulties of maintaining fan engagement in an era of ludicrously high turnover. They debate what Duke's roster-building strategy should look like in this new climate. Next they turn their eye to Duke's transfer portal commitments, Maliq Brown of Syracuse and Mason Gillis of Purdue. How will these players fit on the roster and how can they help next year's team? Where should they play positionally? Who should start? Lastly, they talk about whether Duke will add anyone else in the portal. What is the area of biggest need? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh and Raul are joined by Brendan Marks of The Athletic. First they discuss the 2023-24 season for Duke and for the ACC as a whole. How did Duke's season stack up against the lofty expectations? What led to UNC's turnaround from missing the tournament to a 1-seed? What do NC State and Clemson's tournament runs say about the health of the conference? Then they turn their attention to the 2024-25 season. What do Tyrese Proctor's and Caleb Foster's returns mean for Duke? What kind of player(s) should Duke add in the portal? What will Duke's starting lineup next year be and what will the product look like on the court? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh, Dustin, and Raul go through the over/under picks they made for various team and player stats at the beginning of the season. They react to their guesses and discuss why a player or the team fell short or exceed their predictions. A winner is announced and gets nothing but bragging rights. Note: this episode was recorded before Mark Mitchell entered the transfer portal and before Tyrese Proctor announced he'll return back to school for his junior season. Another podcast will be released next week discussion this and any other developments in the coming days. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices